Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

Viewpoints: The War On Drugs — Or Drug Users; The Health Consequences Of Separating Families At The Border

A selection of public health opinions from around the country.

USA Today:
Trump's War On Drug Users
During the campaign, President Trump committed to addressing America’s drug crisis. He called it “a crippling problem” and “a total epidemic,” which it is. An average of 144 people a day die of drug overdoses. Trump promised increased funding and comprehensive Medicaid coverage for treatment. In March, he said, "This is an epidemic that knows no boundaries and shows no mercy, and we will show great compassion and resolve as we work together on this important issue." (David Sheff, 5/5)

Miami Herald:
Scott Right To Step Up Opioid Fight
It’s unusual to hear Gov. Rick Scott declare a state of emergency in Florida for something other than an act of nature — a hurricane, Zika, runaway wildfires. But on Wednesday, in light of thousands of overdose deaths in the state — many in Miami-Dade — Scott issued an executive order declaring that the man-made opioid epidemic has indeed created a state of emergency in Florida. (5/4)

The New England Journal Of Medicine:
Separating Families At The Border — Consequences For Children’s Health And Well-Being
Decades of research on child development confirms that children develop best in the context of safe, supportive, nurturing relationships. Positive relationships with primary caregivers are essential for children’s healthy physical and emotional development. For children who experience serious traumas, parents provide an essential protective shield and help children regulate their emotions and reestablish a sense of safety, which affects their stress-response system (the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis) and their growth, health, and well-being. Conversely, if children are unnecessarily and traumatically removed from their parents, their physical and mental health and well-being will suffer. The effects of traumatic experiences — especially in children who have already faced serious adversity — are unlikely to be short lived: cumulative adversity can last a lifetime, even increasing the risk of early death. (Michael J. MacKenzie, Emily Bosk and Charles H. Zeanah, 5/3)

The Kansas City Star:
Relax, Your Thin Mints Purchases Are Not Spreading The Gospel Of Abortion
Saladin’s most recent coup is a decision by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas to discontinue its parishes’ Girl Scout programs. Last year, Saladin, a former high school teacher, helped convince her own Archdiocese of St. Louis to urge parishes to cease hosting Girl Scouting troops and activities. Other dioceses have been targeted by parents riled up by Saladin’s website, mygirlscoutcouncil.com.
The nature of the connection Saladin and other conservative Catholic activists see between Girl Scouts and abortion will be familiar to those who have played the parlor game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon or who have read accounts of show trials. The connection, you see, doesn’t exist. But there’s plenty of guilt by association. (Mary Sanchez, 5/4)

The New England Journal Of Medicine:
Resident Duty Hours And Medical Education Policy — Raising The Evidence Bar
On March 10, 2017, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) issued revised common program requirements for residents that go into effect this July. The revisions emphasize the importance of teamwork, flexibility, and physician welfare during training, but all the attention has been (and will no doubt remain) focused on the changes in duty hours. The new rules maintain an 80-hour-per-week cap on residents’ work, averaged over 4 weeks, but extend the permissible work shifts for first-year residents from 16 hours to 24 — limits already in place for residents in year 2 and beyond — and permit more within-shift flexibility as long as weekly duty-hour limits are met. What makes this policy change so important is that it seems to reverse direction on the basis of a new approach to developing and using evidence to inform education policy. (David A. Asch, Karl Y. Bilimoria and Sanjay V. Desai, 5/4)

RealClear Health:
Don't Let The United Nations Impede Disease-Fighters
Officials from the world's leading development and public health organizations, in addition to representatives from the world's top pharmaceutical companies, descended upon Geneva from April 19-22 to participate in the Neglected Tropical Diseases 2017 Summit. The purpose of the gathering in Switzerland was to discuss ways in which these officials and leaders in their fields could work together to control and eradicate ten neglected tropical diseases. (Neerag Mistry, 5/5)

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